This week, color authority Jackie Jordan, Director of Color Marketing for Sherwin-Williams, shares fascinating findings from a recent designer survey on color trends. This Fall, Jackie will travel to all 15 Robert Allen | Beacon Hill showrooms across the country to present colormix 2011, a CEU –accredited Color Forecast for the year ahead. For a list of locations and dates, visit Robert Allen’s Facebook page for updates.
Jackie Jordan, Director of Color Marketing, Sherwin-Williams:
In addition to Sherwin-Williams’ ongoing and extensive research on color trends, our company recently conducted a survey of 1,000 designers nationwide concerning color on a local level. If you think you know your region’s color palette, you may be in for a surprise!
The majority of the designers surveyed believe their own region has its own distinct color palette. Their feedback on the colors of each region is displayed in the preceding image. Many designers noted that a growing number of design clients are getting more adventurous in their choices and appear to be developing a more sophisticated understanding of what color can do. Another common theme was the economy’s impact on color choices, underscoring color’s role as a barometer of our times.
These designers believe color is changing based on global influence and the green movement. Travel and the internet were sited as influences blurring geographic lines and triggering the evolution of a global color palette. The green movement is also seen as an influence on changing color palettes.
Overwhelmingly, most of the designers we surveyed see greens, blues and neutrals in the lead.
As you can see, about a third of our designers saw red and purple losing some influence in their palettes.
The biggest story was sustainability’s impact on color palettes, according to our survey. Other recurring themes were the influence of metallics, the rise of matte black and color on ceilings.
For more on the results of Sherwin-Williams’ color survey, see “The State of Color STIRvey,” an article in the latest edition of STIR magazine. Visit www.swstir.com to order a free copy of this annual publication for Sherwin-Williams’designer customers.